Catacombs in Paris. Catacombs of Paris - underground cemetery

Contacts

Address: 1 Avenue du Colonel Henri Rol-Tanguy, 75014 Paris, France

Telephone: +33 1 43 22 47 63

Opening hours: from 10:00 to 17:00, Mon — closed

Price: 8€, for students - 4€, under 14 years free

Official site: catacombes.paris.fr

How to get there

Metro: Denfert-Rocherea station

Usually Paris is a city of romance, love, fun and Have a good mood, but next to this in the city there are places that can terrify not only tourists, but also many local residents.

One of these places is hidden underground and is called “ Paris catacombs“, although for someone else it is a mysterious and mysterious place with a rich history and interesting legends.

More than 160 thousand tourists visit this place every year. Catacombs for various data stretch for 180-300 km and occupy a total area of 11 thousand sq.m. In the dungeon total about 6 million people are buried.

The Catacombs of Paris in France are huge network of caves and tunnels, made by human hands for almost a millennium. Official name of this place - "Municipal Ossuaries". They belong local authorities, who are trying with all their might to preserve them in their original form for longer.

Catacombs in Paris - history of appearance

The Parisian catacombs began in the 12th century.

Letiya, when local stone reserves became insufficient for the construction of cathedrals, churches and royal palaces. Then they started from underground limestone mining. The first place where excavations began was the dungeon under the current one. Over time, the mines expanded and reached the limits of the modern streets of Saint-Jacques, Vaugirard, Saint-Germain, Gobelin, and the Val-de-Grâce hospital. In the 13th century these caves still served wine storage from local monks.

Along with the extraction of limestone, the city expanded, deteriorated, and already in the 17th century there was a threat that the city might collapse underground. The areas of Saint-Victor, Saint-Germain and Saint-Jacques were especially dangerous at that time. Due to this Louis XVI created the General Inspectorate of Quarries, which continues to perform its original functions today.

During its existence, it spent the maximum quality work to strengthen structures that prevent destruction of the dungeon, although there are some problems in their work. For example, strengthening is carried out by filling the space with concrete, as a result of which gypsum quarries, which are considered historical monuments, disappear. In addition, concreting is not a very durable structure, since The groundwater it gets washed away over time anyway.

Separately worth mentioning about the ossuary, which is part of the catacombs. This reburial site of Parisian cemeteries, since they began to take up quite a lot of space in the city. Basically, the remains from the Cemetery of the Innocents, where the dead from 19 churches were buried, were kept here during the period of the bubonic plague and the victims of St. Bartholomew's Night. All remains were treated with a special solution and placed in the form of a wall. Now this wall stretches for about 780 meters and terrifies others. In addition, during the laying of this “wall of bones,” the workers laid out decorative mosaics, which are especially scary to look at in a dimly lit dungeon.

Catacombs Museum in Paris

The Catacomb Museum is a fairly popular place. Visitors are not frightened by either the huge number of dead or the depressing atmosphere. According to tourists, visiting the catacombs and ossuary does not cause fear. It’s more of a genuine interest that you want to calm down as soon as possible. The Catacomb Museum has a number of facts that will be of interest to tourists. Among them it is worth noting the following:

In 1980 it was created police squad, whose function became patrolling the catacombs. This is a kind of sports brigade that makes sure that outside visitors do not go beyond the tourist areas. There will be a price to pay for this violation. fine of 60 euros. But, despite this, there are always lovers of extreme sports and risk, who through sewer hatches or other loopholes enter a forbidden part of the dungeon. However, there are unwritten laws among these guys:

do not leave the entrance open;
do not paint the walls;
do not litter.

Where is the Catacomb Museum in Paris and how to get there

The Catacomb Museum is located underground, the entrance to which is near the station Denfert-Rocherea metro station. To get to the museum, you need to focus on the lion sculpture, since next to it there is a pavilion - the place for the entrance.

Address Parisian catacombs: 1 Avenue du Colonel Henri Rol-Tanguy

Working hours Paris catacombs: daily from 10.00 to 17.00 except Monday. The last tourists can enter as part of an excursion group at 16.00.

Ticket price to visit the catacombs will cost 8 euros. Price for students below - 4 euros. Entrance for children under 14 years old provided for free, but you must present a document at the entrance that indicates the age of the child.

Catacombs on the square of Paris:

Initially, the Parisian catacombs were just quarries where building stone was mined since the times of Ancient Rome. Mining has been going on for some time. open method, but by about the 10th century the reserves useful material became scarce, and the workers had to sink deeper into the bowels of the earth. This is how the first underground mines were founded, which grew under city blocks. It is believed that the stones mined here are made from and.

The townspeople used the already exhausted tunnels for a variety of purposes: they set up breweries and warehouses in them, stored wine supplies, created prisons and even held parties. However, some of the dungeons were still abandoned and constantly threatened with collapse. Therefore, towards the end of the 18th century, King Louis XVI ordered an inspection of the former quarries and strengthening of weak points.

In addition to caring for the safety of the city streets, under which the underground tunnels passed, the monarch had another goal. The fact is that by that time the famous Cemetery of the Innocents, where victims of the bubonic plague were buried, among others, was overcrowded and turned into a hotbed of infections. Moreover, as a result of the collapse of the crypts, human remains filled the basements of nearby houses, and the situation became catastrophic. This is where the catacombs of Paris came in handy - they were turned into an Ossuary, a repository of hundreds of skulls and bones.

Today, no new burials are taking place in the dungeon, but all the old ones remain in place. The area open to tourists has become part of the city's Carnavalet Museum, and places inaccessible for excursions are periodically visited by diggers and amateurs thrills.

Interesting: The General Inspectorate IGC, designed to monitor the condition of the Parisian catacombs, has existed from the time of Louis XVI to the present day. Inspectors check the condition of tunnels, prevent collapses and have the most an accurate map dungeons.

How to get to the catacombs of Paris

Official entrance to the mysterious Parisian dungeons located on the square (Denfert-Rochereau) Denfert-Rochereau, next to the metro station of the same name. Thus, the easiest way to get here from any part of the city is by metro.

The exact address: 1 Avenue du Colonel Henri Rol-Tanguy, 75014 Paris, France

How to get there from Charles de Gaulle airport:

Option 1

Electric train: On the lower level of Terminal 2, where the RER train station is located, you need to take the RER B line to the Denfert-Rochereau station, the journey takes 47 minutes.

On foot: from Denfert-Rochereau station to the entrance to the museum - about 100 meters.

How to get there from Gare du Nord:

Option 1

Metro: From Gare du Nord station take line 4 to Denfert-Rochereau station, the journey takes 20 minutes.

On foot: From the Denfert-Rochereau metro station the entrance to the catacombs of Paris is a 2-minute walk.

Option 2

Electric train: take the RER B electric train from the Gare du Nord station to the Denfert-Rochereau station, the journey takes 10 minutes.

On foot: from the RER station Denfert-Rochereau to the museum the distance is about 100 meters.

How to get there from Gare de Lyon:

Option 1

Electric train: From Gare de Lyon station, take line RER A to Châtelet - Les Halles station, the journey takes 2 minutes.

Electric train: at the Châtelet - Les Halles station, change to the RER B line and go to Place Denfert-Rochereau, the journey takes 7 minutes.

Option 2

Metro: From Gare de Lyon station, take line 14 and go to Bercy station, the journey takes 2 minutes.

Metro: at Bercy station, change to line 6 and go to Denfert-Rochereau, the journey takes 9 minutes.

Catacombs of Paris on the map

What to see

The Catacombs of Paris begin on the left bank of the Seine and go under the streets of the right bank. However, if we talk about their tourist part, it originates under Denfert-Rochereau Square, where the ticket offices are located. After purchasing tickets, visitors go down the spiral staircase about 20 meters and enter the front of the museum, where you can learn the history of Paris's most mysterious landmark.

Next, the route goes through illuminated tunnels with models of famous Parisian buildings, and along the way you can see many branches and passages carved by ancient stonemasons. Some walls are decorated with quite modern graffiti - they appeared in the 70s and 80s. There are also small stone sculptures and bas-reliefs carved directly into the walls. Some of them were created back in the days when active work was carried out in the mines.

Finally, having examined all the exhibits, tourists find themselves in the very heart of the dungeons - a huge necropolis. A sign above the entrance warns about this, but those who dared to go down into the darkness of the tunnels are unlikely to turn back.

Ossuary in the catacombs of Paris

All " City of dead“filled with bones, long walls, unique sculptures and tall columns are made of them. It is believed that somewhere here the remains of Charles Perrault, the legendary revolutionary Robespierre, the philosopher and mathematician Pascal, and the ministers Colbert and Fouquet are kept.

Previously, the bones were scattered in disarray, but now they are laid out in the tunnels in even rows, and the tunnels themselves are divided into sectors. In each sector there is a sign indicating the approximate time of burial and the cemetery from which the remains were taken.

The first to begin work in the catacombs of Paris was the head of the General Inspectorate of the IGC, Ericard de Thury. He, in fact, built a necropolis here, which already in 1806 turned into a tourist attraction. At the inspector's suggestion, the famous inscriptions appeared - gloomy aphorisms carved both directly on the walls and on special tablets. The meaning of one of these inscriptions is “Stop! Here is the Kingdom of Death” - determined the unofficial name of the Ossuary.

The necropolis itself occupies several halls, in each of which you can see bizarre drawings made of skulls and bones. Visitors are allowed to follow a strict route that leads from hall to hall and ends in the inspector's gallery (i.e., the entrance to the catacombs of Paris and the exit from them do not coincide). A fine is possible for leaving the excursion trail - compliance with the rules is strictly controlled by the police.

Opening hours and ticket prices

The catacombs of Paris are open:

From Tuesday to Sunday - from 10:00 to 20:30;

The dungeons are closed on Mondays.

Ticket prices:

Children under 18 years old - free;
From 18 to 26 years old - 11 € ( ~823 rub. );
From 26 years and older - 13 € ( ~973 rub. );
Audio guide - 5 € ( ~374 rub. );

Audio guides with a 30-minute lecture are available except French also in English, Spanish and German (there is no Russian-language entry).

Double tickets can be purchased which also include entry to the Archaeological Crypt of Ile de la Cité. They are valid for 48 hours and cost 17 € ( ~1,273 rub. ) per person.

See Paris Catacombs for details.

Excursions

You can visit the Catacombs of Paris on your own or as part of a group excursion. But independent visitors are also launched in groups, since no more than 200 people can be in the dungeon at the same time. This is what causes the queues, which can often be seen at the entrance to the museum on Place Denfert-Rochereau, because each group spends about 40-45 minutes in the catacombs.

Excursions for individual visitors:

Held on Thursdays at 13:00;
Registration 15 minutes before the start of the tour;
Cost 20 € ( ~1,497 rub. ), including entrance ticket.

Excursions for organized groups:

Number of no more than 20 people;
Conducted on any working day;
Registration 2 months in advance on the website;
Cost 30 € ( ~2,246 rub. ) per person;

Children under 14 years old are allowed into the famous dungeons of Paris only if accompanied by an adult.

In 1955, the authorities banned independent visits to the Parisian catacombs (except for the open museum area). And in 1980, a special police department was created, the main task of which was to prevent illegal visits to underground mines.

Despite the existing ban, in the 1970s and 80s “underground parties” were very popular in Paris - young people, and especially representatives of informal movements, often organized discos and concerts here.

There are legends about the closed part of the dungeons: for example, there is a belief that the famous Phantom of the Opera, who lives in box No. 5 of the Parisian Opera Garnier, goes here at night - into the tunnels of former quarries.

Another legend is associated with a guard monk from the late 18th century. Once Philibert Asper, living at the abbey of Val-de-Grâce, wanted to try wine from the monastery cellar, which was directly connected to the dungeons. Alas, the lost watchman was found only 11 years later, and by that time it was possible to recognize him only by the surviving scraps of clothing.

Memorial plaque erected to watchman Philibert Asper

The Catacombs of Paris are not recommended for pregnant women, as well as persons with claustrophobia, heart disease, mental disorders. In addition, it is worth keeping in mind that the spectacle may be difficult for impressionable visitors.
The underground museum does not have facilities for people in wheelchairs, or for those with disabilities. serious illnesses musculoskeletal system and moves with difficulty. Along the route you will have to climb a staircase of 131 steps.
When visiting, it is better to choose comfortable sports shoes, since the stone floors of the tunnels have an uneven surface and in some places can be slippery from moisture.
You should not take too bulky bags or other large things with you - they will not be allowed inside with them, and there is no storage room or wardrobe here. The maximum allowable size of a bag or backpack is 40x30 centimeters.
The dungeons of Paris are always cool, the temperature at any time of the year is +14 degrees. In summer, it's worth bringing a sweater or light jacket.
In the museum, it is prohibited to eat or drink, touch exhibits (including bones), take photographs with flash, or use a tripod. Taking photos without flash is allowed.

The mysterious and incredibly ancient catacombs of Paris attract tourists no less than the above-ground part of the city with its palaces and gardens. Moreover, perhaps this is where you should rush first, because these dungeons may one day simply disappear. Despite the fact that some of the tunnels are filled with concrete, the underground waters of the Seine do their job year after year and erode the fortifications. Alas, ancient quarries are constantly under threat of destruction. But for now this historical monument is still open, it can be part of an interesting walk around Paris. Together with him it is convenient to visit the Luxembourg Gardens, the Montparnasse Tower, the Museum of Modern Art, the Bourdelle House Museum and many other interesting places located just 1.5 kilometers away.

They have long been the object of close attention both from local residents and from numerous travelers. What attracts such a huge number of visitors here every year? As a rule, this is a desire to get acquainted with the history of a great city. Although it’s no secret that sometimes extreme sports enthusiasts or adventure seekers go to the Parisian catacombs. These places are actually shrouded in mystery and mystery, and many more questions will need years and years of research to answer.

This article is aimed at telling about such an interesting and rather unknown object of the French capital as the dead. The reader will learn details that, as a rule, even the most experienced guides do not tell tourists about.

Section 1. General Description

The catacombs, which stretch under the capital of France, are a system of tunnels that appeared under the city in the distant past.

The mysterious underground galleries are more than three hundred kilometers long. Historians believe that the ancient quarries arose as a result of the extraction of materials necessary for the construction of palaces and cathedrals in the city during the Middle Ages. Later, the dungeon became a grave for many people and turned into a huge cemetery. The number of Parisians buried here exceeds the current population of the French capital.

Even during antiquity, the Romans mined limestone in these places, but the mines were open type. Gradually, as the city grew, the number of such manufactories increased. The main part of the tunnels appeared during the times French king Philip Augustus, who reigned from 1180-1223, when limestone was used to build protective ramparts.

Section 2. Parisian catacombs. History of origin

total area underground tunnels, formed during the development of limestone, is approximately 11 thousand square meters. m.

The first underground mining of limestone began under Louis XI, who gave the lands of the castle of Vauvert for this purpose. During the Renaissance they grew rapidly, and by the 17th century. The underground Parisian catacombs, photos of which can now be found in almost all guidebooks dedicated to the French capital, ended up within the city limits, which led to risk on the streets.

In 1777, the king created an inspectorate to inspect quarries, which is still in effect today. For 200 years, workers at this institution have been working to strengthen and prevent collapses in the underground. Many mines have been filled with concrete, but the fortifications are gradually being eroded groundwater Seine, and the danger of landslides remains.

Section 3. Brief historical background

The history of the Parisian catacombs is directly related to the life of the townspeople. How? We suggest you familiarize yourself with several facts:

During the World Exhibition in Paris (in 1878), the Catacombs cafe was opened in the underground galleries of Chaillot. Many confidently claim that it is simply impossible not to visit this place.
In the dungeons of the capital, champignons are grown, which are a favorite product in national cuisine France.
The famous writer Victor Hugo created the greatest epic novel, Les Miserables, the plot of which is closely connected with the underworld of Paris.
During World War II, the quarries were used by leaders of the French Resistance. In the summer of 1944, a headquarters was established there, which was located just 500 meters from secret bunker fascists.
In the era cold war and the threat of a nuclear attack, some underground tunnels were converted into bomb shelters.
"Parisian Catacombs" is a film, one of the few that was not filmed on film set, but directly in the dungeons themselves.

Section 4. What is an Ossuary?

In the Middle Age Catholic Church Burials near churches, most of which were located in cities, were not prohibited. More than two million people are buried in the Cemetery of the Innocents, the largest in Paris. The remains of not only ordinary parishioners are buried there, but also people who died during the plague epidemic and died in the massacre. Hundreds of unidentified bodies are also buried in the cemetery.

Not everyone knows that often the graves reached a depth of 10 meters, and the mound of earth increased to 3 meters.

Not surprisingly, the city cemetery subsequently became a source of infection, and in 1763 Parliament banned mass burials within the city. In 1780, after the collapse of the wall separating the churchyard from the city area, the cemetery was completely closed, and no one else was buried within Paris.

For a long time, the remains, after disinfection, were taken to the underground quarries of Tomb-Isoire. Workers laid bones at a depth of more than 17 meters, resulting in a wall and almost 780 meters of galleries with the remains of the dead, which were located in a circle. So in the Parisian catacombs in 1786 the Ossuary was founded. About six million people found peace here, including many famous personalities, but even more unknown to anyone.

Section 5. Paris catacombs today

According to tourists, when you get into the Ossuary, you don’t even notice that you are at a depth of 20 meters. Here you can see wall paintings from the 18th century, various monuments and historical exhibits, and an altar located in an air supply shaft.

Guests and local residents claim that by paying close attention to the ceiling, you can notice a black line - “Ariadne’s thread”, which helped not to get lost in the galleries in the past, when there was no electricity. Now in the dungeon there are still places that have not changed since then: monuments and bas-reliefs installed on burial sites of past centuries; well for limestone extraction; support pillars for the vault.

In general, it should be noted that the Parisian catacombs (2014 is another confirmation of this) are becoming an increasingly popular attraction in the French capital.

Section 6. How to get inside

The entrance to the Parisian catacombs is located next to the Denfert-Rochereau metro station. Landmark - The catacombs are open daily (except Mondays) from 10.00 to 17.00. The cost of the excursion is 8-10 euros (children under 14 years old are free).

By the way, experienced travelers advise paying attention to the fact that individual visits are prohibited.

Currently, 2.5 kilometers of galleries are available to visitors. There are also closed areas that are dangerous to visit. In November 1955, a law was specifically issued in Paris prohibiting stay in these places. And since 1980, compliance with these rules has been monitored separate brigades police.

Section 7. The dangers of illegal visits

Despite all the prohibitions, there are thrill-seekers who, risking their lives, illegally enter the underground through sewer hatches, metro stations, etc.

Underground galleries with narrow and low labyrinths have complex passages where it is easy to get lost. So, in 1793, the caretaker of the Val-de-Grâce church tried to find ancient wine cellars, but got lost. His remains were found only many years later, the poor fellow was identified by the keys and remaining clothes.

There are also many modern “heroes”, but the local police are doing everything possible to prevent such would-be travelers from entering.

This country actually has a lot of interesting things: the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, amazing ancient cities, the ocean, endless fields of vineyards, the Parisian catacombs... France, however, should be remembered exclusively positive points and joyful moments. Anyone who has already managed to visit the mentioned object is ready to dissuade you from committing a rash act.

On Saturday morning the streets of Paris are deserted. The shops are closed, the aroma of fresh bread comes from the bakery. At a traffic light, some strange movement attracts my attention. A man in a blue raincoat crawls out of a hatch in the sidewalk. His hair is braided into many small braids, and a lantern is attached to his head. A girl with a flashlight in her hand rises behind him. The young people are wearing rubber boots, stained with light mud. The guy closes the cast-iron manhole cover, takes the girl by the hand and, laughing, they run away down the street.

Cataphiles are the best guides to the underground world of Paris, the existence of which most Parisians only suspect.

Paris has a deeper and stranger connection to the underground than any other city. Its dungeon is one of the most impressive and heterogeneous. The underbelly of Paris is thousands of kilometers of tunnels: one of the oldest in the world and a very dense metro network and sewerage system. And under the French capital you can find canals and reservoirs, tombs and bank vaults, wine cellars converted into nightclubs and galleries. But the most amazing underground structures– old limestone quarries that look like an intricate network. They stretch under many blocks, mainly in the southern part of the city. In the 19th century, these quarries were dug for the extraction of building stone. Then farmers began to grow mushrooms in them (and collected hundreds of tons a year!). During World War II, the quarries became part of the theater of war: French Resistance fighters hid in some areas, Germans built bunkers in others. Today, the abandoned tunnels are explored by another organization - a free, unled community, whose members sometimes spend not only days, but also nights underground. These are lovers of the underground life of Paris, the so-called cataphiles. Since 1955, entry into the quarries has been prohibited, so young people living on the edge of the law most often become cataphiles. Veterans of the movement say that its heyday came in the 70s and 80s, when the traditional Parisian rebels were shaken up by punk culture. Then it was much easier to get underground - there were more open entrances. Some cataphiles, for example, discovered that it was possible to enter the quarries through a forgotten door in the school basement, and from there make their way into the tunnels that replaced the old cemeteries - the famous catacombs. In corners known only to them, cataphiles held parties, painted pictures, and took drugs. Freedom, even anarchy, reigned underground. At first, the “upper city” turned a blind eye to everything. But in the late 1980s, the owners of municipal and private buildings closed the entrances to most basements and tunnels. They were patrolled by an elite police unit. But it was not possible to get rid of the cataphiles. Those two young people from the hatch are typical catacomb lovers. Maybe they were on a date: several of the men I explored the quarries with met their future wives in the tunnels, exchanging phone numbers by flashlight. Cataphiles are the best guides to the underground world of Paris, the existence of which most Parisians only suspect. By the way, subway cars run right over the bones of their ancestors. Catacombs. Philippe Charlier, an archaeologist and expert pathologist at the University of Paris, hangs a plastic bag over the back of a shabby chair and rubs his hands. It's cold and dark here, like a grave. Droplets of water flicker on the ceiling; smells of mold and damp earth. We are surrounded by stacks of human remains: walls of skulls and femurs. Charlier rummages through a bag full of bones and pulls out a parchment-colored skull. Small bones and dirt fall out of the bag. Six floors above the catacombs is the Montparnasse café, where waiters serve tables and write menus in chalk on a blackboard. Lunch time is approaching. On a normal day, the catacombs are filled with sounds - the echo of voices and laughter of tourists who sometimes stand in queues for hours to enter here. But today the catacombs are closed, so you can disassemble the bones in complete silence.

About six million Parisians found peace in the catacombs - almost three times the current population of the city.

Charlier reaches into the bag again and takes out the front, front, part of another skull. We peer into it. Below the eye sockets the bone is porous and concave. The nasal opening is widened and rounded. “This is leprosy in an advanced stage,” the specialist says cheerfully, and I think about hand sanitizer. About six million Parisians found peace in the catacombs - almost three times the current population of the city. Skeletons were dug up from overcrowded cemeteries in the 18th–19th centuries and literally filled old quarry tunnels with them. The latest burials date back to the era French Revolution, the earliest - to the Merovingian era, they are more than 1200 years old. All remains are anonymous and disintegrated. But Charlier is able to piece together the fragments of history into a coherent whole. Illnesses and accidents, healed or neglected wounds, food, traces of surgical operations - all this helps Charlier understand the picture of his former life. "Maltese fever!" – he exclaims, peering into another vertebra. This disease affects people who come into contact with infected animals or their secretions, such as milk. “The poor guy must have been making cheese,” suggests Charlier. Soon he is going back to the office, and at his feet there will be a whole bag with what is left of such stories. Inspectors. Spring morning we are going to the suburb of Arkoy. The driver stops the car on a busy street. At the roadside, my companions put on blue raincoats, high rubber boots and helmets. We join them at a hatch on an embankment overgrown with ivy. Below us is a bottomless dark tunnel. The group members turn on the lights attached to their helmets and go down the stairs. These are the employees of the General Inspectorate of Quarries (IGC), who ensure that Paris does not go underground. At the end of the stairs we squat in a narrow passage while geologist Anne-Marie Leparmentier measures the oxygen levels in the air. Today there is enough of it. We walk along the passage, hunched under the low ceiling, like trolls. Water flows down the limestone walls and squelches under our boots. In the stones, inclusions are visible - these are the remains of ancient sea inhabitants. In the slippery mud we find a rusty horseshoe - it remains from a draft horse that transported building stone here more than a century ago. Modern Paris stands on massive formations of limestone and gypsum. Local stone was used by the ancient Romans - the baths, sculptures and sports arenas they built have been preserved on the Ile de la Cité and in the Latin Quarter. Many centuries later, Roman Lutetia became Paris, the quarries expanded and deepened, and the stone from them served as material for the construction of the most magnificent Parisian buildings - for example, the Louvre and Notre Dame Cathedral. The open mines continue with a network of underground galleries. At first, the quarries were located far beyond the borders of Paris. But the city grew, and some of the buildings ended up directly above the ancient tunnels. This went on for several centuries, without any control. Workers in the quarries worked almost blindly, by torchlight, suffocating from dust, under the threat of collapse. When the quarry was exhausted, it was filled with cobblestones or simply abandoned. On the surface, no one paid any attention to this. No one even realized how porous the foundation of Paris had become. The first major collapse occurred in December 1774, when one of the old tunnels collapsed, engulfing houses and people in the area of what is now Avenue Denfert-Rochereau. Over the next few years, many serious collapses occurred, with houses plunging into a dark abyss. King Louis XVI commissioned the architect Charles Axel Guillemot to map the quarries and strengthen them. The inspection teams started slowly and hard work to strengthen tunnels. To make it easier, they dug several more tunnels to connect the isolated quarry networks. Around the same time, when the king decided to close and empty one of the city's overcrowded cemeteries, Guillemot was asked to place the old burials somewhere. Today, Anne-Marie Leparmentier and her team continue the work of the first inspectors under Guillemot. At a depth of about 30 meters we stop in front of a support of five or six cobblestones, erected in the early 1800s. A huge black crack cuts through the ceiling above us. But the support still supports him. “Small collapses happen every year,” Anne-Marie tells me. – In 1961, the earth swallowed up an entire area southern outskirts, 21 people died." Leparmentier takes some notes. Another tunnel runs underneath us. One day, the support will collapse, Anna-Marie explains to us, and the tunnel in which we stand will fall into the one below us. We go even lower. At the end of the corridor we squat down and look at the small dark hole“It was for her that we walked here for several hours. You can squeeze through the hole with great difficulty - no matter how you get stuck. None of my companions know where this hole leads. The youngest of our team hangs into the hole, his legs dangling in the air. I look at Leparmentier: she shakes her head, as if saying: “Well, no, I won’t go there.” But soon he waves to me - welcome! Some cataphiles descend underground only from time to time and stick to well-known routes. But the most active ones embark on underground journeys much more often and advance much further. With his next guides - two young men in blue raincoats– I met in the park. They grabbed a compressed air cylinder and other scuba divers' equipment. Mothers with strollers passing by looked at them with suspicion. Dominic is a maintenance worker, and Yopi (he gave only his nickname) is a graphic designer, father of two and an experienced cave diver. We head under the bridge, where a secret passage emerges cold air. As we approach, a man crawls out of the hatch like a spider, covered in mud from head to toe. A bachelor party just ended here, he says. Most of underground passages recorded on the maps. The very first, intricate maps of Guillemot were repeatedly supplemented by his followers, in addition to this, modern cataphiles compile their own maps. Some, like Yopi, pass long distances to fill in the remaining white spots. We overcome many tunnels until we find ourselves in front of our today's goal - a black hole.

Many people come to the dungeon for parties, some to draw, others to explore.

Many tunnels are dotted with mine entrances and wells. Some are deep, they are filled with water, others serve as an entrance to secret rooms. Yopi has explored dozens of wells, but, according to him, no one has climbed into this one yet. The water is calm, like an icy surface, but the light of our lanterns does not penetrate into the depths, bumping into emerald stillness. Yopi checks his timer, mask and equipment. Then he fastens his helmet, lights two lights on it and begins to descend into the darkness. After a few minutes he appears on the surface. The mine turned out to be only five meters deep, there was nothing interesting at the bottom. But at least now he can complete the map. We spend a few more hours wandering through crypts filled with moldy bones and galleries painted with giant, colorful graffiti. We pass the place where a few days ago I took a wrong turn and got lost with a couple of underground cops whose job is to catch the Yopies and Dominics of the underworld. Yopi leads us to a room that is not on any map. For several years he and his friends hauled cement here and shifted limestone blocks to build benches, a table, and a sleeping area. The room turned out to be comfortable and tidy. There are even niches cut into the walls for candles. I ask Yopi what draws him underground. “There are no bosses here,” he replies. “Many people come here for parties, some to paint, some to explore. Here we can do whatever we want." Inside the cloaca. The author of Les Miserables, Victor Hugo, called the Parisian sewer system the conscience of the city - it is there that every thing finds its true appearance. In a small trailer crowded with sewer workers ready to go to work in the 14th arrondissement of Paris, Pascal Quinon, a 20-year-old war veteran, talks to me about more specific things- about explosives, diseases, giant rats that are rumored to live under Chinatown. Pascal's father and grandfather also worked in sewer pipes. On a narrow street we stop next to bookstore: we get into white overalls, pull on high waders, whitish rubber gloves and put on white helmets. Warm, thick air rolls in from the open hatch. Kinyon and his colleagues say they only smell it when they return from vacation. "Ready?" he asks. In a semi-dark tunnel, an endless stream of waste water. On the sides of the gutter there are two huge pipes: one delivers water for houses and apartments, the other for washing streets and watering plants. Some of these tunnels were built in 1859, when Hugo wrote Les Misérables. At the intersection of the tunnels there are blue and yellow signs with the names of the streets passing above. I move on, kicking up the spray, trying not to think about the dark stream under my feet. Kinyon and his colleague Christophe Rollo shine flashlights into the cracks and mark the faulty pipes in a diagram on a pocket computer. “If you look carefully at your feet, you can find anything,” says Rollo. Sewage workers tell how they found jewelry, wallets, pistols and even a human corpse. And Kinyon once found a diamond. Treasure. Under the Opera Garnier - ancient building The Paris Opera is a space in which not all French believe. In the 1860s, when laying the foundation, engineers tried to drain the soil, but ended up filling a reservoir 55 meters long and 3.5 meters deep with water under the building. The underground pond featured in The Phantom of the Opera is home to several plump fish. Opera staff feed them frozen mussels. I once watched firemen conduct a training exercise here. They emerged from the water in shiny diving suits, How seals, and chatted about sea monsters. Not far from the opera in the 1920s a whole army laborers who worked around the clock created another unique underground space. At a depth of 35 meters under the Bank of France building, behind doors that are heavier than the entrance to the Apollo space capsule, they built a vault to house France's gold reserves - about 2,600 tons. One day I found myself in this vault with photographer Steven Alvarez. In all directions, halls with high steel bars are filled with gold. On the bars of the bars, like fine snow, lies many years of dust. Gold has always been stolen and melted down, so one of the ingots stored here may contain both parts of the pharaoh's cup and the ingot brought by the conquistadors.

At a depth of 35 meters under the Bank of France building there is a vault where France's gold reserves are located - about 2,600 tons.

The bank employee hands me one of the bars. It is a heavy worn brick with a deep dent at the bottom. The seal of the American Assay Office in New York and the date, 1920, are stamped in one corner. “American gold is the ugliest,” says the employee. He points me to other bars that he thinks are nicer. They have neat edges and rounded tops, like a loaf of bread. Each such bar costs about 500 thousand dollars. France is slowly selling some of its treasures, the official explains, but buyers are reluctant to take tattered American gold. In the next room, these ingots are packaged and sent to secret addresses, where they are melted into more attractive forms. In March last year, thieves entered a nearby bank vault through a tunnel. They tied up the guards, opened about 200 safe deposit boxes and set the vault on fire before leaving. But here at the central bank, employees assured me, the underground vault is not connected to any of the Parisian underground passages. I asked if anyone had tried to rob him. One of the employees laughed in response. "This is impossible!" – he assured. I remembered Napoleon, who founded the Bank of France in 1800, who once said: “For the French nothing is impossible.” We exit through steel doors, climb 10 floors, pass through a scanning device and through a room with glass walls and sliding doors. Finally finding ourselves on the street, Alvarez and I take some time to recover from what we saw and heard. “Did anyone check your bag?” - I ask. "No. What about yours? We are walking down the street. I notice a hatch that should lead into a tunnel. The tunnel may run parallel to the street, or perhaps lead towards the storage facility. I mentally begin to move in this direction, imagining the path and its many branches. This is how the cataphiles described the state that occurs when you return to the surface.

It would be a stretch to call the Parisian catacombs some kind of calling card of the city. Few people know about them, but if you want to find yourself in a completely unusual, very mysterious and even a little scary place, then you should definitely like it here.

In fact, the Parisian catacombs are a fairly extensive network of winding underground tunnels that were formed during the process of limestone mining. And this one construction material was vital for the construction of numerous palaces and cathedrals in Paris.

In general, about the Parisian catacombs we can say that - total length of all tunnels and caves is approximately 190 to 300 kilometers, their total area exactly exceeds 11 thousand square meters. Then, according to preliminary data, about 6 million people are buried here. Not all catacombs are open for tourist visits - only 2.5 kilometers of them, and in total about 160 thousand people visit them annually.

The journey to the famous Parisian catacombs begins in a small pavilion, which is located near the Denfert-Rochereau metro station. You will need to navigate the lion sculpture, created by the author of the famous Statue of Liberty - Frederic Bartholdi. Bole the exact address- 1, avenue du Colonel Henri Rol-Tanguy. Open to the public every day except Mondays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For an entrance ticket you will have to pay from 8 to 10 euros, but children under 14 years old are free. You can visit the catacombs only as part of a guided tour. independent visits not allowed here.

In what century exactly did they start? underground mining, scientists have not yet established this, it is only known that by XVII century parts of many residential areas of the city of Paris were located above the catacombs. At that time, the city was growing rapidly and there was a great danger of collapse. In the second half of the 18th century, the reigning king Louis XVIII even issued a special decree with the purpose detailed study and quarry inspections. As a result of the work carried out, special strengthening structures were installed to prevent the destruction of underground tunnels.

Speaking about the Parisian catacombs, we must not first of all forget about the Ossuary, which is considered one of the most important components of this network of tunnels. The fact is that the history of this place began back in the distant 11th century with the cemetery of the Innocents. In those days, people who died from the bubonic plague and as a result of the massacre in St. Bartholomew's Night. About 2 million people were buried here then. Naturally, the necropolis became a breeding ground for a deadly infection, and therefore burials within the city limits were prohibited in 1763.

Then the remains began to be disinfected, removed and stored in the Tomb-Isoire quarry, which was already abandoned at that time, located at a depth of 17 meters. Then the bones and skulls were simply stacked on top of each other, so the result was a whole wall. And already in 1768 the Ossuary was founded in the catacombs of Paris. At that time, it consisted of 780 meters of galleries, which were located in a kind of circle. This place with the remains of dead people received the unspoken name of the City of Darkness. During World War II, the Parisian catacombs were widely used by members liberation movement, they were hiding here from the invaders.

Once inside the dungeon, you can see not only many bones and skulls, but also various monuments with exhibits, and on the walls there are drawings and very distinct traces of the ancient work of stonemasons. On the walls of the underground gallery you will also see the “black line”, which served as a guideline for workers of that time. There was no concept of electricity back then.

After you walk through the labyrinth, you will find yourself in the “atelier” - a wide part of the catacombs, preserved almost in its original form. Centuries ago, the necropolis was widely decorated with bas-reliefs and sculptures, but unfortunately many of them have not survived to this day. And you will complete your route in the inspector's gallery.